In the wake of yet another airline collapse, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is again warning travellers of the dangers of DIY holidays.

DIY holidaymakers could be putting their holidays at risk by booking individual components of their holiday independently of each other - flights, accommodation, car hire etc. booked separately as part of a DIY holiday are unconnected and are not covered by the CAA’s Air Travel Organiser’s Licensing (ATOL) financial protection scheme.

Should an airline or another provider of part of your holiday cease trading you are responsible for finding an alternative, often more expensive, replacement - if you cannot purchase a replacement, you may be unable to claim back money already paid for the unused components of your holiday and could run the risk of being stranded abroad if the airline you flew with went bankrupt during your holiday.

For peace of mind, the CAA is highlighting the benefits of booking all the elements of a holiday with the same ATOL protected company.

ATOL spokesman David Clover said: “Our research shows that although millions of holidaymakers will build DIY breaks this summer, they don’t realise they are at risk. Holiday purchases are still a significant household purchase so we want consumers to make informed choices about financial protection. We must also emphasise to those building their own holidays that they may not be protected against the risks of travel company insolvency.”

He continued: “Booking an entire holiday with one travel company does not mean that consumers have to compromise flexibility for protection. Many of the major online holiday operators allow holidaymakers to build their own tailored ATOL-protected break.

“If consumers are booking DIY holidays this summer, we urge them to take out their own financial protection measures such as buying with their credit card, rather than a debit card, or taking out insurance which covers against the dangers of insolvency.”

ATOL (Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing) is managed by the CAA, and provides repatriation costs if a tour operator fails. In the year to March 2008, ATOL enabled more than 2,000 customers of failed tour operators to complete their holidays and return to the UK, a further 21,000 received refunds of advance payments. For the year, total expenditure on repatriations and refunds was £7.5 million.

For more information about ATOL and to check an ATOL number click on the link